In The Memory of Water (winner of the 2000 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy), three sisters meet on the eve of their mother's funeral. As the conflicts of the past converge, everyday lies and tensions reveal the particular patterns and strains of family relationships. '"Combines a flair for witty dialogue with a relish for the dynamics of theatre ... a mistress of comic anguish" Guardian Five Kinds of Silence (winner of the 1996 Writers' Guild Award for Best Original Radio Play and the 1997 Sony Award for Best Original Drama) is the story of a family in which control has become the driving force, where everything has its place, and where there are only rules, duties and punishments. "An acute and funny writer, Stephenson carves out a welcome territory that is distinctive, contemporary and theatrical" Independent

Shelagh Stephenson is one of Britain's most acclaimed contemporary playwrights. This book contains a collection of four plays.

THE STORY: Billy controls his wife and two adult daughters to the extent that they can't leave the room without asking permission. He runs his family as a personal fiefdom, and the women are there to service him and his madness. He is violent, dist

The Methuen Drama Guide to Contemporary British Playwrights is an authoritative guide to the work of twenty-five playwrights who have risen to prominence since the 1980s. Written by an international team of scholars, it will be invaluable to anyone interested in, studying or teaching contemporary drama. Among the many playwrights whose work is examined are Sarah Daniels, Terry Johnson, Martin Crimp, Sarah Kane, Anthony Neilson, Mark Ravenhill, Simon Stephens, Debbie Tucker Green, Tanika Gupta and Richard Bean. Each essay features: A biographical sketch and introduction to the playwright A discussion of their most important plays An analysis of their stylistic and thematic traits, the critical reception and their place in the discourses of British theatre A bibliography of texts and critical material

THE STORIES: The Globe and Mail describes THE MEMORY OF WATER as both gloriously funny and deeply felt...Indeed, THE MEMORY OF WATER is so funny that it appears at first to be pure black comedy, with the newly bereaved sisters indulging wildly in wi

The first collection of plays by one of Britain's most acclaimed contemporary playwrights - "one of the most promising dramatic prospects of the new millennium" (Daily Telegraph) The collection includes the THE MEMORY OF WATER in which three sisters meet on the evening after their mother's funeral and fight out old troubles with one another. FIVE KINDS OF SILENCE is a terrifying portrayal of a family for whom rules, duties and punishments are the driving force. In AN EXPERIMENT WITH AN AIR PUMP in a world of scientific chaos, cloning and genetic engineering, the cellar of a house yields up the secrets of the scientific discoveries of 1799. In ANCIENT LIGHTS, Hollywood stars come home to the hills of Northumberland.The Memory of Water: "combines a flair for witty dialogue with a relish for the dynamics of theatre...a mistress of comic anguish" Guardian Five Kinds of Silence: "this quietly eloquent play" Independent An Experiment With An Air Pump: "teeming with interest, humour, eloquence and, above all, ideas...it's not often we see a new play with this much energy, variety and intelligence" Independent Ancient Lights: "a cracking, grown-up play...with a light touch that cuts surprisingly deep" Daily Telegraph

In The Memory of Water (winner of the 2000 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy), three sisters meet on the eve of their mother's funeral. As the conflicts of the past converge, everyday lies and tensions reveal the particular patterns and strains of family relationships. '"Combines a flair for witty dialogue with a relish for the dynamics of theatre ... a mistress of comic anguish" Guardian Five Kinds of Silence (winner of the 1996 Writers' Guild Award for Best Original Radio Play and the 1997 Sony Award for Best Original Drama) is the story of a family in which control has become the driving force, where everything has its place, and where there are only rules, duties and punishments. "An acute and funny writer, Stephenson carves out a welcome territory that is distinctive, contemporary and theatrical" Independent